Insert members for use with hose clamps are known as such in the prior art. My prior U.S Pat. No. 3,303,669 describes an insert member in the form of an open metallic ring which is provided with a central circumferentially extending bead to increase the specific pressure against the hose and therewith assure good sealing The insert member thereby consists of a flat band which includes an inwardly directed pressed-in bead in the center area and whose ends overlap underneath the clamp. To improve the guidance of the clamp which may be, for example, of the type described in any of my prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,614,304; 3,082,489 and 3,286,314, the edges of the metallic band from which the insert member is made may also be bent outwardly.
An insert member of only limited circumferential extent, which is disclosed in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,463, is of sufficient length to bridge the gap underneath the ear of a clamp, for example, as described in my aforementioned prior U.S. Patent or U.S. Patents, to mention a few of the clamps utilizing so-called "Oetiker" ears. The insert member of my prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,463 is provided with a relatively short circumferential groove intended to strengthen the insert member against buckling so as to permit use of a thin band material for this insert member.
Various insert members are also disclosed in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,312,101 which are intended to prevent leakages within the area underneath the ear even with the use of relatively thin band material of the insert member. In one embodiment of an insert member according to this patent, an outwardly protruding embossment generally in the circumferential direction is provided which is intended to fit underneath the ear and is so constructed and arranged that the legs of a typical "Oetiker" ear will ride up along the surfaces of the embossment during contraction of the ear to thereby increase the holding ability. According to another embodiment of this patent, the ring-like member is provided at one end with two leg portions defining therebetween an elongated opening into which a tongue portion at the other end of the insert member is intended to slide during contraction of the ear in order to maintain a practically perfect circular configuration during tightening. Still other embodiments of this patent disclose insert rings made, not from thin band material, but from wire-like material of solid cross section.
While the insert members disclosed in my aforementioned prior patents proved quite successful in connection with their intended functions, they provided no automatic positioning of the various components independently of the clamping ring. Outwardly bent edges of the insert member described in my aforementioned patents performed a guide function for the clamping ring. By the same token, they determined the relative positions between the clamping ring and the insert member without any influence on their position relative to the nipple and hose mounted thereon and the holding ability of the overall arrangement.